Thunderbolts: Rising from the Darkness
by Freddyfrmelmst
Summary: Redemption is a long journey. This is Ward's journey out the Darkness back to the Light
1. Chapter 1

**Thunderbolts: Rising from the Darkness**

By Freddyfrmelmst

Disclaimer: I don't own Agents of the SHIELD, The MCU or Marvel Comics

Many Thanks to MarvelMatt for betaing and helping me work out this story.

Ward grunted as he dropped to his knees, his scream of pain and rage echoing across the barren plain.

He'd done it.

She was dead.

The twisted, evil, Inhuman version of Skye, who was known only as Quake was finally dead. Using his own hands, he had snapped her neck.

And Ward was the last man standing.

Lowering himself from his perch above the battle, the slow, rhythmic clap of The Grandmaster was the only sound heard in the barren landscape, before an amused chuckle escaped the ancient blue alien's lips.

"Well done, my Hyperion", a smirk adorned his features as he took in his creation, one of the strongest forces in his universe.

"So … what now?" Grant asked the question, unable to contain the weariness and exhaustion that plagued.

The Grandmaster gave him a once over, a playful expression of consideration lighting up his face.

"Now? Now I put you back where I found you Grant Ward. You are free from any from obligation that you owe to me. You have served your purpose well and as a _special reward_ for winning", he exaggerated the two words as amusement danced in his eyes, "You can keep the powers I have bestowed upon you"

"And … and my team?" He asked the question as he couldn't stop himself from looking over the empty field towards where their bodies lay. They had all been through a lot over the last few days"

They had all been through hell.

"They too shall be restored to life and returned to where I found them, both safe and sound. They however, will not retain their powers, after all", the amusement in his eyes morphed into pure mirth, "they lost"

"You're a son of a bitch", was his clever response, snarling at the figure he knew, that could strip him of his abilities before wiping him out completely. Instead, he took on a mock expression of seriousness, tapping his chin with one of his long, blue fingers.

"True Grant Ward … but I am a son of a bitch that keeps his word"

And with a single wave of his hand Grant Ward found himself back inside of Vault D, in the depths of the SHIELD base 'Playground'.

And in front of him was Leo Fitz, who couldn't quite believe his eyes, telling him that Ward was right in front of him.

"Ward", Fitz's voice was a whisper, carried across the emptiness of the vault.

"Fitz", was all that was said in response, as he fell down against his bunk, slouching against the wall, half-seated, the exhaustion from his last few days catching up with him.

"Why are you here?"

"I had to see you before Coulson sends you away. I … I need to know why", Fitz told him fighting to keep himself from stuttering.

"Why what Fitz?"

"Why did you bother to try save Jemma and me?" Fitz told him as he held up the small transmitter that Ward had stuck inside of the medical pod with them.

"Fitz, just, try and understand something okay? Am I a good man? Not by a long shot, I haven't been one for a very long time … and that's if I ever was one to begin with. But there are some lines I just don't cross. I do not kill innocents", Ward told him, matter of factly.

"Really?" Fitz's tone was laced heavily with sarcasm, "Then what was Agent Ko … Ko … Koenig?" He stuttered the last few words, and his cheeks heated up as a response.

Ward's reply was just to give a soft chuckle.

"You are seriously asking that? You really don't know? Identical triplets as agents? You really bought that? They are an LMD series that Fury liked to use. Why do you think I destroyed him? He could track us with those lanyards he gave us, he even marked us all so he could track us even without them"

Fitz's eyes widened at that little revelation.

"You were innocent in all of this Fitz, just like Ace was, and just like Jemma was. I never would have allowed _any_ of you to be hurt if I could prevent it. Why do you think I dropped you out of The Bus after I gave you that? Garrett wanted you dead, as in a bullet in your brain dead"

"Then why… Why didn't you just … let … him … d … d … die?" Fitz asked tears unashamedly running down his face, he swiped angrily at them, determined not to cry in front of their prisoner.

"Fitz would you let your father just die in front of you? Would you let Coulson or May 'just die' in front of you?"

When the engineer didn't answer, he took the opportunity to press onwards.

"Garrett saved me from Hell, from myself even. He taught me, trained me, he was the first person in this world who made me think I was worth _something_. Tell me … how could I just let him die?"

Ward leant back further on his bunk, looking as relaxed as possible, while the engineer was anything but.

Fitz was aghast at Ward's words.

 _Had they ever really known the Specialist at all?_

 _Was everything a lie?_

 _Or had that just not bothered to look too deeply into it?_

Before Fitz could say anything, or ask anything else, Coulson and May appeared, leading a squad of armed security agents down into the Vault.

Grant sat up and smiled, doing his best to look as amused as possible.

"Well boss man, I guess this is it, the big goodbye"

"On your feet Ward" May growled out at him.

Ward stood up as the energy field was turned off, offering them his hands.

"It's time", Coulson told him, locking eyes, trying to project the steel in his voice that Fury had been known for.

He just rolled his eyes in response. After all he had been through lately, there wasn't a damn thing Coulson or any one at SHIELD could do to him.

After they had finished cuffing him and shackling his feet, Ward was lead up to the garage, making a note of where everything was in SHIELD's new base.

If Coulson didn't want to blindfold him, then that was just fine, he'd use the advantage he'd been given.

Looking along the corridors, it seemed to him that everyone on the base had turned out to get a glimpse of him being sent off.

He smirked, noticing the unnerved look that crossed May's face as he did so.

They were all going to be _so_ disappointed.

As they reached the armoured transport that his brother had sent for him, Ward stopped, causing one of the soldiers to uselessly tap him with the butt of his weapon, as he turned back to look at the assembled ranks of the new SHIELD, he saw Skye watching him from where she was attempting to blend in next to Simmons, stood with some of the other scientists.

Ward turned back towards the transport and, smiling now, he moved several more steps, bringing him directly under the open roof, which would usually be used to let their aircraft in or out.

Today it was his source.

It was blisteringly hot outside, so they'd opened the roof to let some sunlight in, and let the cool air out.

 _Their mistake._

The first rays of sunlight were like taking an espresso in the morning, jolting him into a new state of alertness.

He'd felt Hyperion's powers bubbling under his skin, The Grandmaster having apparently kept his word.

All he needed was a way to regain his power.

The sunlight made contact with his skin, sending a trail of fire coursing through his veins as his cells metabolised the raw power, drinking in its radiation and giving him the power boost he needed.

He flexed his wrists.

He snapped the cuffs open like they were made of paper. He span around to grab the two rifles pointed at his back and bent the barrels so they were pointing towards the sky, rendering them completely unusable.

The remaining four guards leapt at him to try and contain him, but jumping upwards and pushing out, he used his strength to send them flying backwards, before just hovering in the air.

"I guess I'll be leaving you here", he smirked as he took them in, frozen, with one hand on their ICERs, as they gaped openly at his floating form.

"Be seeing you", Ward smiled as made an 'OK' symbol with his hand before saluting them.

Coulson stiffened, and Ward knew he had gotten the message.

Seeing no reason to linger, he flew straight up and out of the hangar's roof.

/

The entire team was in complete shock.

Not only was Grant Ward now free from custody, he was also apparently a gifted individual, and from the looks of things, he could've left Vault D anytime he wanted to.

Despite that, only one thought was running through Coulson's mind.

"How the hell had they never known Ward was gifted?"

/

Two hours, and several states, later, Grant Ward landed at the foot of a mountain in Colorado.

A mountain that was once a hidden base for a Hydra sect that no longer existed and only two living men knew about it.

Ward smiled as one of the base's many hidden doors opened, and out stepped one of the few men Ward could say for certain that he trusted with his life.

"Grant _bloody_ Ward! You want to explain to me how in the hell you managed to get super powers!? And botch my perfectly planned and yet, now unneeded breakout plan for you!?"

His oldest living friend was stuck somewhere between disbelief, anger and complete amusement.

"Norbert, you wouldn't believe me if I told you … so how about burgers and a beer and I will lay it all out for you"

Norbert nodded and waved for him to enter the base.

/

Coulson had gathered his team, and they were huddled together in the main briefing room. Spread out before them was every word that SHIELD had ever written about Grant Douglas Ward.

Huffing in exasperation, Skye threw her folder back down on the table.

"Guys, we've been at this for hours! There is nothing written in anything, that hasn't been completely redacted, that gives us even a hint about how Ward could've gained his powers. For all we know, aliens could've shot him here as a baby", Skye wined.

Coulson would've chuckled had the situation not been so serious. As it was, he was afraid.

 _Very_ afraid.

"Hey AC", he looked up from his brooding to see Skye and a few of the other looking at him, "what was up with that 'be seeing you' stuff with Ward?"

Coulson took a quick breath, "It's from the sixties. There was a British TV show called 'The Prisoner', it's about a spy captured by an unknown organization that want the information in his head and they swear to get to it by hook or by crook. In the show all the people trying to break The Prisoner salute with that gesture and say 'be seeing you'"

"So do you think that Ward has information that we need or want, and that he was taunting us, or that like in the show, not everything is as it appears?"

The others looked at May as she finished speaking, causing her to raise one of her eyebrows.

"What?" At their continued looks, she shook her head, "I do enjoy a good television show every so often", was all she commented as she continued to read her file.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thunderbolts - Chapter 02**

/

Norbert took another swig of his beer as he tried to digest exactly what Grant had just told him.

"So, let me get this straight", he put his beer down, looking his oldest friend straight in his eyes as he spoke, his incredulity shining through his voice, "a cosmic-powered, immortal, god-like being, with a penchant for playing games, and a fondness for ones that end in hell, kidnapped you, gave you superpowers that make _you_ of all people a god on Earth, still having difficulty with that by the way, then he threw you into a death match, where you fought alternate reality versions of John Garrett, your little pookie, Skye, Iron Man, that monster that helped the Hulk flatten most of Harlem and a copy of yourself", when his friend just nodded, he continued, "You, and the team given to you by this being, then eventually manage to kill all of them, with you being the sole survivor, so you were 'rewarded' by getting to keep your new superpowers. And then finally, everyone else was brought back to life before being sent home with no powers, no memories of what happened, and no consequences of their actions?" Again, Ward nodded, "I'm sorry, and don't take this the wrong way … but are you high, and if you are, can I have some? Or did whatever you did to get yourself those powers warp your mind - bro you sound crazier than a rat in a tin shit house"

Grant just nodded for a third time, prompting Norbert to take another swig of his drink.

"As crazy as it sounds, and believe me, I know it sounds crazy, but it's the truth. And to be honest, it helped me more than I can say. It forced me to see how truly fucked up Garrett made me, and how close to walking down a path to pure evil I was, without even noticing or really caring for that matter. I may be twenty miles down the wrong path now, but I have to believe that I'm not so far gone that I can't see that I was on the wrong path, and that I can find a way to get myself off of it"

"Forgive my bluntness Grant, but just what did you do to Garrett and Skye, and hell, your doppelganger while you were there?"

Grant took a breath and closed his eyes, letting his ghosts come back to haunt him.

"Garrett he... he was holding one of my teammates hostage. It was a girl named Jade. He … he threatened to snap her neck if I tried anything. God Norbert, the kid couldn't have been more than seventeen. I told him I wouldn't do anything. He just … laughed at me, and then he snapped her neck. I didn't even hesitate, I just punched straight through his chest and ripped out his heart, and d'ya want to know something funny?"

Nobert could only nod, enthralled by his friend's dark tale.

"Turns out, his heart really was black. It was a side effect of all the serums and his Deathlok implants, his organs were decaying and being repaired wrong. His heart really had turned black inside his chest", Grant finished his sentence as he gave a sad chuckle, before throwing back some more of his beer.

"That's…", he blew out a breath, "that's just some heavy shit man"

"Yeah it is", Norbert noticed the look that flashed across his friend's face. It wasn't often, if ever, he could say that he had the opportunity to see Grant Ward look melancholy. "But it was the kick in the ass I needed. I could only see this … great man that saved me when I needed saving, not the monster he had become. And as for my, what did you call it? My doppelganger? He met up with a gifted named Hiro that could teleport and was particularly gifted with a katana"

"And Skye?" Norbert's voice trembled, afraid of what the answer would be, "What happened to her?"

"She killed Hiro after he sliced and diced her boyfriend. She could fire these energy blasts from her hands, and she just pummelled the poor guy into Jell-O. I flew right at her and just grabbed her. I lifted her into the air and held her I told her I was sorry then...I killed her", Norbert watched as his friend swallowed, having difficulty continuing, and he was shocked to see the tell-tale signs of tears in his eyes before he blinked them away, "I broke her neck. She ended up just as crazy as I was. This was a shit show beginning to end but it also felt like it was tailor-made for me to confront my inner demons"

Norbert slid another beer over to him.

Grant sounded like he could use it.

He carelessly popped the top off with his thumb, his strength sending it flying across the room, bouncing off the wall, before he took a long swig, swallowing down almost half the bottle in an instant, his spirits apparently lifting immediately.

"Now, Norbert, old friend, I think it's time for a whole new Grant Ward. It's time I made my life worth mean something other than being Garret's little lapdog"

His friend shot him an amused look, chuckling as he did so. In his mind, it was past time for that to happen.

"Okay then Grant, where do we begin?"

Grant raised an eyebrow. "Who's we, white man?"

Norbert sighed, muffling his groan at the accent, while it seemed better, his friend still had a lot to learn about pop culture, despite it being years since they had first met, his friend really could be an idiot at times.

"You are damn near the only friend I've got in this fucked up world, and I am not going to let you ride off to your death on some damned fool crusade for redemption unless I am right up there with you", Norbert told him firmly.

"You are aware I'm indestructible now right? Seriously, _nothing_ on Earth can hurt me"

Norbert just stared at him, a look of ' _you're an idiot and you better know it_ ' written across his face.

Grant just laughed in response, "Alright then Sundance, we need to build up a gang for what I have in mind"

Nobert smirked as he offered his response, "Then let's ride Butch"

"Alright _partner_ ", he winced at Ward's awful accent, he needed to work on that one, "but let me ask you a question. Do you have any sort of social media access here? Can you post something online and not have it be traced back here and give away our location?"

That question honestly puzzled Norbert, but he was used to dealing with strange requests.

The price of being the best in his field.

"I can definitely post something online that can't be traced here. That's easy enough. What did you have in mind?"

Ward just smiled, all this apparent happiness from his friend was starting to put the man they called 'The Fixer' on edge, even when relaxed, Ward rarely smiled, "Just something I learned from an old girlfriend"

/

It wasn't until a day later that SHIELD found out exactly what Ward had been up to since he had escaped from their custody.

Skye stormed into Coulson's office ahead of the team meeting he had called for updates in the search for Ward, and she was _pissed_.

"AC? You are never going to believe this", she told him as she pulled out her laptop and thrust it onto his desk, almost throwing it at the man.

"What is this Skye?" Coulson asked, as he looked at the computer, his brow furrowed.

"Ward's side of the story. It was posted online, and it's managed to go viral in the last twelve hours"

Coulson's eyes widened as his hand shot out, his finger smashing the button labelled 'PLAY', as he stared straight at the video, the face of his team's former second in command immediately filling the screen.

 _"My name is Grant Douglas Ward. If you are listening to this, then I need you, just for a minute, to not believe what you have been told about me, for it is not the complete truth._

 _You were most likely told that I was a Level 7 Black-Ops Specialist for the organization known as SHIELD, and that I was a card carrying member of the Nazi-born group that are called Hydra. You will have been told that I was a Nazi, that I was evil and that I am a murderer._

 _Yes, some of this is the truth, yes I was an Agent of SHIELD, but I was never a Nazi. I was working within Hydra – not for Hydra – only to save the life of the man that was like a father to me. He rescued me after my own family abused me for over a decade, and my own older brother forced me to abuse others._

 _My story is no short, nor is it simple. I want to set the record straight about me"_

Coulson hit the pause button, unable to watch any more. He just couldn't believe it. Ward was going for the heart and minds of the average person.

He was playing to win.

 _NO!_

"We've got to get a message out. We **need** to counter whatever it is he is saying", snarled Coulson, shocking Skye. It was an expression that didn't sit right on the normally calm Director's face.

Skye still couldn't help but wince at the Director's words though, and he noticed.

"What?"

"I went through the entire video. Everything Ward said in it is the truth", as Coulson's eyebrows shot up into his forehead she explained, "he spilled the beans on everything he ever did for Hydra and for SHIELD. We literally have nothing on record he has done that he didn't already talk about. Every crime he committed, every shot he took. He talks about it all. The damn video goes on for over three hours. AC I hate to say this but this video makes SHIELD come off really bad. Ward was a Specialist and with the stuff Black Widow dumped online when the Triskelion fell … the old SHIELD comes off really bad, and all the fallout's being aimed at us. The stuff he did to us during the fall is nothing compaired to what he did for SHIELD before it … there's literally nothing we have left to counter his arguments with"

Coulson rubbed his face, not able to believe what he was hearing.

"Just how many people have seen this piece of garbage?"

Skye shook her head, imagining his reaction.

"AC … the video is viral, millions of people all over the world have already seen this. There is already a website up broadcasting it on a loop. The people are calling for an investigation of Ward's brother - the Senator, and they're already bringing up us and his ties with SHIELD …"

Coulson wanted to shoot someone. His hands clutched at the air as if he was imagining crushing Ward's throat. He'd been promised Christian's help with PR and backing within the senate in exchange for sending him Ward, and now he had neither – if anything, the fallout was going to damage SHIELD's reputation even more than 'The Fall' had.

"CNN has also located his younger brother Thomas. He admitted to what Christian forced Grant to do and that Grant saved him from the well he told us about", Skye added meekly, as she caught sight of the rage in his eyes, simmering just below the surface.

"Skye get the team, no-", his voice was dangerously level, "get everyone together. We have got to find a way to stop this"

/

Norbert was having a lot of fun.

As Grant slept off the emotional release he had gone through after explaining his story to the world. Norbert was playing around online, looking on as the world saw the real Grant Ward, his Grant Ward, and they liked what they saw. It had taken less than a day for the major networks to pick up his story – they had even found and interviewed his little brother, who had cried on camera, as he admitted that everything Grant had said about their family was true.

 _Either that kid's traumatised for life, or he really hates Christian and is one hell of an actor._

He hadn't had this much fun in years, and all it took was a video camera and a YouTube account. This is why he liked having Grant as a friend. The man always had been a game changer.

And while Grant slept, he was trolling through social media and slamming both SHIELD and Hydra equally.

His eyes widened as some Junior Senator from Ohio publicly stated that Ward was a victim of an Intelligence Agency that was out of control. Quickly followed by a clip of Dr Phil, who was proclaiming that Ward was a modern day Patty Hurst - a kidnap victim brainwashed to do the bidding of his captor.

The smile on his face grew and grew. If Grant Ward could do this with just a video, he couldn't wait to see what was going to happen once they got a glimpse of some real action.

/

Back at the Playground, all hell had broken loose.

"I just can't believe people have been taken in by his bullshit", Coulson snapped to the assembled agents.

"Oh just wait boss, it gets worse" Mack added, as he dropped a sheet of paper in front of Coulson, who immediately snatched it up, the paper wrinkling in his fist as he read further and got angrier.

"Ward's Warriors?" Coulson ground out, unable to believe what he was reading.

"It's an online group that is trying to submit a petition to the President … to grant a full pardon for Ward"

"Two days - two _**fucking**_ days he has been gone and he has turned everything upside down. How the hell is did he pull this off? Somebody please tell me"

When nobody answered him, he found himself gripping the ends of his thinning hair.

"What bloody miracle is Ward going to pull off next? Is he going to get a second season of Firefly? Or maybe he'll settle for figuring out who shot JFK"

/

As Coulson was raging to his agents, Ward was waking up feeling refreshed for the first time since he had left The Bus at Cybertek.

It was a new day and it was time for him to be a new man.

To be a good man for a change.

Permanently this time.

 _No more facades._

Walking into the base's command centre, he found Nobert laughing his ass off at the screen, wiping a few stray tears from his eyes.

Ward had to raise an eyebrow, slightly worried, as Nobert paused the screen and struggled to breathe.

"Something funny?"

Norbert only hit replay on the screen and let Grant see for himself. They both watched on as Coulson went off on a ten minute rant about the injustice of people that were backing Ward, and how it was all so unfair that the heroes of SHIELD were being called terrorists and villains when Ward was being praised as a survivor and that there was even a movement to get him a pardon.

Grant could not help himself and he gave a few chuckles as well as the normally calm and collected Coulson blew his stack, not knowing that all of the injustice he was bitching about was the result of the manipulations of The Fixer, screwing them, making them too busy to track Ward.

"If only there were security cameras in that room, I'd have this uploaded right alongside your video"

"If there are no camera's in that room where is the image coming from?"

Nobert's smile grew to look downright evil.

"Oh yeah, I hacked the video transmissions from the Koenig series of LMDs they're using. I figured that since you destroyed one of them that I may as well put the rest of them to good use"

"So that's how you knew where I was been held"

"Of course. It's not like secret SHIELD prison facilities are listed on Yelp"

"Meh, I'd give it a three. The food sucked but the bed was pretty comfy"

Norbert just groaned.

"When did you develop a sense of humour anyway? I think I may have like you better when I thought you were an LMD too"

Ward snorted in response.

"Got learn to laugh or you will just go insane. I think I'm proof enough of that"

/

Leo Fitz sat down as his D.W.A.R.V.E.S scanned the whole of Vault D looking for any traces of DNA left behind by Ward to help give them any clue as to what his powers were. Yet his mind kept circling back to the video Ward had made. Everyone on the base had seen it by now. Most everyone called it garbage or a load of lies. But not him, deep in the pit of his stomach something made him think that maybe, just maybe, that Ward had been telling the truth.

He had seen the news segments on Ward as well. Something about Ward's older brother really set his teeth on edge, but he couldn't place what it was just yet.

His musings were cut short as one of his little flying assistants notified him that it had found something.

Inside of Ward's mattress, through a small tear, was a piece of paper no bigger then what you find inside of a fortune cookie.

Opening the paper. Fitz couldn't help but gasp at what he read.

 _ **Be seeing you Fitz.**_

Ward had planned for him to find it. Was it a threat? A promise? There had to be something more to this and he was going to find out what.

Fitz pocketed the paper as he heard someone coming down the stairs.

"Fitz, any luck finding anything?" came the soft voice of his lab partner.

"N...n...no luck yet Jemma", Fitz lied, offering her a small smile.

Ward was sending him a message and he needed to know exactly what it was.

/

"Screeching bitch!" Growled Senator Christian Ward, as he slammed his phone down against the receiver on his desk.

He had been summoned to the family estate for a meeting to discuss just what the public response to Grant and Tommy's videos had done to the family, and to decide what their own response to the public would be.

 _Screw the family_ , he thought, his approval ratings had nosedived so fast you would think they were in complete freefall. He needed to find a way to turn this around, and he had to do it fast, but because of all the classified material that Romanov bitch had dumped online after the fall of SHIELD, everything they could've used to turn this back onto Grant, he had not only already admitted to but he had explained why he had done it, and under who's orders. He may have damaged SHIELD, but it looked like he was going to take down his entire family as fucking side effect.

His thoughts turned murderous as he began to make the phone calls to his wife and assistants to make the trip happen.

If he ever got his hands on his brother - either of them - he would make them beg for the time they spent at the well before he was done with them.

/

Sinthea Ward was pissed.

Her own son, Grant, had actually turned on her.

She had such high hopes for him.

When he burned down the family home and almost killed his brother, she secretly applauded him. That's why she had sent John Garrett to teach her son to be a real man. Someone who would do what was needed to secure what they wanted.

What she needed.

Not like her spineless husband, or her brute of a son Christian. Grant was to be her perfect heir - the one to finally see her family's dream become a reality.

But no, he had to go soft during the battle against his former teammates, against his false friends.

He had to save those scientists, he wouldn't kill the girl, he had to let that Agent May beat him.

She had left him in that SHIELD prison cell as a punishment. Once he had seen the error of his ways, then she would've had him set free, allowing him to continue her glorious legacy, but Christian, trying to improve his own standing, had tried to use Grant for his own ends, and now not only was Grant free from their control, be was actively fighting against them.

This meant that there was a lesson that her favourite son needed to be taught.

A cruel smiled twisted her face as she set the two pictures down on the desk in front of herself, her fingers stroking the frames, the images of two people staring back at her.

'Skye' and Leopold 'Leo' Fitz.

They were the ones that had helped turn Grant against her, against John.

Against his true nature.

For those transgressions, she would watch on as they died, slowly, and painfully, screaming for help that wouldn't come.

That would teach her wayward son about defying her will.

And he _would_ learn.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

/

Norbert grunted, feeling a slight cramp building in his muscles, as he dangled in the air, hanging underneath the underpass.

"Techno to Hyperion. I'm in position", he whispered, before scrunching his face in mock irritation at himself - they were alone, and if their comms system had been hacked (not that anyone should be able to do that - he _was_ the best in the world, after all), then whispering wouldn't help them remain undetected.

There was a soft chuckle in his ear, as his partner-in-crime realised the same thing, before noticing something else.

"Techno? You're changing your name to that? Really?"

"Yes _Hyperion_. I'm calling myself Techno - I can't very well call myself Fixer when I'm being one of the good guys now, can I? What would my clients think?"

"Fine, fine. Hyperion in position. The target is the tractor trailer. I can see it now, roughly two minutes out. Two security in the lead car", he smirked to himself before adding, "Oh! Remember to have fun"

/

Norbert smiled as opened his tech pack and slid his personalised HUD over his right eye. It instantly roared to life, giving him access to a list of the key information for the area and the mission objectives, before he sent a mental command, focusing it, allowing him to identify the target, and confirm what Ward had just told him.

Tapping a quick command into the keypad mounted on his wrist, he spared a glance for their target, watching as the traffic light just past the overpass changed from green to red, and as the trucks slowed down, keeping with their disguise of hiding in plain sight, Norbert prepared to drop down from his hiding place.

"Insertion in five, four, three, two, one", he breathed the words, as he dropped down to the roof of the trailer, wincing slightly at the sound his feet made on impact, before disconnecting himself from his dropline, sparing it no attention, as it rolled back up, and into the darkness of the overpass.

"And we're in play"

"Confirmed. I'm moving to second position"

Ward looked down from where he was hovering in the sky, all of his attention on the truck as it continued down the road towards their chosen ambush site. It was time for him to show the world that he was serious about helping instead of hurting.

"Techno, the lead target is entering the target zone, good luck … and Geronimo", Ward smiled to himself, feeling a rush as he dove, driving himself down and towards the ground. Twisting around as he fell, so he could land feet first, he smashed into the hood of the lead SUV, driving the engine into the ground, and stopping it, stone dead.

He fought back a smile, as he saw the two agents in the truck had been successfully held in place by their safety harnesses, the abrupt halt had slammed them against the truck's reinforcing titanium frame, and the impact had knocked them both out instantly.

Stepping over what little remained of the engine, he walked away from the wreckage of the SUV, his gaze seeking out his friend, and he couldn't help but roll his eyes when he saw Techno surfing on top of the trailer for the incoming truck.

 _Show off._

The driver of the truck spotted him, and gunned the engine, in an attempt to run him down, only for the engine to die as he tried to accelerate.

 _And Techno strikes._

The truck spluttered on, trying, and failing, to keep its momentum going, before it rolled to a stop right at Hyperion's feet. Looking up at the Hydra agents in the cab he smiled lightly, unsettling both of them as he pushed his hand straight through metal grill of truck, and gently (for him anyway) he pulled the engine straight out.

"Gentlemen, you two may want to vacate the vehicle now"

The two agents wasted no time in jumping from the cab, before snapping to a decision, and trying to make a run for it.

Hyperion heard Techno chuckle in his ear, "So … I know you told them to get out, but did you say they could run?"

He chuckled back, "No… but it's almost _cute_ , that they think they can outrun me. I mean… they did see me come at them from the sky didn't they? And quite easily rip out their engine? Oh well…"

Leaping over the truck and the distance they'd managed in a single bound, he landed in front of the two fleeing agents, and took pleasure in the way their eyes light up in a combination of fear, disgust, and slight awe.

His arms shot out, grabbing both of them by their collars, and easily lifting them both bodily into the air.

"Now, gentlemen, welcome to what will be the most painful moment of your lives"

He'd barely finished speaking when the agent he held in his left hand screamed like a little girl, before he passed out, and hung there limply.

The other agent just looked on, a disgusted look marring his features at the apparent weakness his partner had displayed.

"Go ahead then, kill me you _freak_. Cut off one head and another will take its place. Hail Hydra!"

His response was to watch the look of fear creep into the other man's eyes as his own eyes glowed, burning red and the agent could feel the heat from where he was, as the energy built up behind his irises.

"That's why, when you cut off the head, you cauterize the wound to keep it from growing back, or did you miss that part of the legend?" He snarled, his anger bleeding through his features, and then the agent screamed and joined his partner in unconsciousness.

Dropping both of them to ground, Grant look up at Norbert, who was still stood on top of the trailer, before tapping his earpiece.

"So… how we doin' partner?"

"We're good. Got no breakage, and the cargo is completely unharmed"

"Good. Let me gift wrap these two goons, and then we can get the Hell out of here, _and then_ we can grab a beer"

"Works for me"

/

Phil Coulson was angry.

Scratch that, he was _pissed_.

Here he was, trying his hardest to rebuild SHIELD after everything, trying to turn it into the agency it should have been in the first place, and at single _bloody_ every turn he was being undercut by Grant Douglas "Fucking" Ward. And the worst part was that it seemed like he wasn't even actively trying to undercut them.

Storming into the conference room, he slammed the latest newspaper he'd been given on to the table and looked at his assembled agents.

"Last night, Grant Ward and an unknown accomplice decided to hijack a truck that belonged to Hydra. On board of said truck were a load of hostages from Hydra's incentives program, and among them … were Dr Elizabeth Ross - the only daughter of General Thaddeus Ross, and the long-time girlfriend of Dr Bruce Banner AKA The Incredible FUCKING HULK!" He pinched the bridge of his nose, attempting to calm down before he snapped, and beat one of his agents to death, "As well as her, there was also a Jack Monroe listed. We've done some digging, and found he is the last living relative of James Buchanan Barnes, AKA Bucky, AKA The Winter Soldier, who also just happens to be the best friend of Captain America. Can anyone tell me how in the Hell of it, Hydra managed to get this close to the Avengers without any of us knowing?"

"I'm afraid it gets worse AC", Skye chimed in, gulping slightly as he rounded his glare onto her.

"Skye, how can it get any worse?" Coulson asked, with a pleading note in his voice, barely holding on to his temper, determined not to unleash it onto his team.

"Ward contacted the Army, well actually, he contacted General Talbot and General Ross directly, about the hostages and the captured Hydra Agents. According to the chatter on the web, the US Military's new unofficial official policy towards Ward, is that they are to remain hands off as long as he's only targeting Hydra. Until Ward shows that he's prepared to move against a civilian population, Ross called in a favour to 'even' things up - they won't touch him"

"Excuse me", Coulson growled, as he walked back out of the conference and the agents watched through the window as Coulson yelled, putting his fist through the wall three times, exhaling heavily after the third one, before brushing the dry wall dust off his suit straightening his tie and walking back into the room.

They all decided to ignore his bloody knuckles.

"Now does anyone have anything new about Ward's escape and what his current goals are?" Coulson asked in a calm voice.

"Yes sir", it was Fitz that answered.

Fitz walked towards a video screen and pulled up an image of the scrap of paper Ward had left him.

"Hidden in Ward's mat-,.ma-, ….mattress, I found a slip of paper. There was me-, message written on it, and it reads, _'Be seeing you Fitz'_. When I studied it closer, I found that the dot over the 'i' in my name was actually a micro-dot", he paused, before Coulson rolled his hand, motioning for him to go on, "Inside the micro-dot was a file of an old 0-8-4 mission which Ward had undertaken with Garrett in his early days with SHIELD"

"What type of 0-8-4 are we talking about here, Fitz?"

"The really unknown type. Their report says that they were unable to get the artefact. Apparently it was the base for an old Chinese legend about a magic rock that hit the Earth, made of a shining green stone, and that, when it landed near a village, a strange voice called out of it, so, thinking it was the voice of a god, one of the villagers took the metal and from it, they melted it down and forged it into something else, which has been sealed away ever since. The two of them went to China to try and locate it after a group of archaeologists' uncovered records about its supposed resting place"

"Was that all that was there?"

Fitz shook his head no, and Coulson let a put a weary sigh, again motioning for him to continue, "There was also an email address and a phone number"

Coulson's eyes widened, straightening up immediately, all traces of his anger and exasperation gone, and in its place were alertness and traces of excitement.

"He gave you a way to contact him directly?"

Skye jumped in.

"No AC, the number and the e-mail both go to a remote servers for messages and text - it's basically a virtual dead drop"

"Have you sent any messages to Ward yet?"

Skye nodded as she pulled up an email, "I had Fitz send an email saying he wants to know why Ward was giving him information on a 0-8-4. I embedded a Trojan Horse in the e-mail to track Ward from wherever he goes and checks the drop from"

Coulson smiled, _finally, some good news,_ before opening his mouth to reply.

A beeping noise cut off whatever Coulson's response was going to be.

"He sent an answer AC", Skype told the group as she opened the email, putting it up onto the video screen for all of them to see.

An images of a bright green, but ancient-looking lantern appeared on the screen, and several pages of Chinese text appeared alongside it.

"Skye, can you translate that for us?" Coulson asked, after he had turned to May, who looked like she was trying to read the text, before shaking her head, telling him that she couldn't read it.

"Yeah, just give me a sec AC. It appears to be a really old dialect. Actually … it looks to be the original legend of the 0-8-4"

With a few key strokes Skye had an English translation on the screen in place of the Chinese.

/

Ward smiled to himself as he sat at a booth in Starbucks, newspaper in hand as he pulled his cap further down, casting his face in shadow.

He sipped at his black coffee and appeared to be reading his newspaper, but in reality, he was looking across the street at the police station the Army was using to reunite the hostages he had helped rescue with their families.

He had to admit it was also pretty awe inspiring to watch when the Avengers flew into town in their quinjet, and he couldn't tear his eyes away as Bruce Banner and Betty Ross were reunited, and then Captain America introduced himself to Jack Monroe. He watched as the two were introduced and Ward actually thought something he never thought he would, _'My god that kid is bigger fanboy then Coulson'_

His quiet musings were interrupted when a man with shaggy, unkempt hair and a matching baseball cap, sat down directly opposite him and wasted no time in pulling a gun on him.

He eyed him critically, his x-ray vision letting him see through the mask the cap helped create, "James Barnes, I presume", Grant stated in an even voice as he folded his newspaper, setting it down on the table.

"That's was everyone tells me Mr. Ward", he answered, keeping his voice just as even as his potential opponent.

"Call me Grant … Bucky?"

The man in question shrugged, "Whatever", his polished silver hand relaxed its grip on his gun slightly.

"So Bucky … What can I do for you?"

Snatching the newspaper from him, Bucky set the gun down on the table and quickly covered it with the paper, keeping it aimed at him.

"I saw your speech about working for forgiveness. About being forced to do stuff, but taking the responsibility. I want that. I want a shot at redemption"

Ward's eyes widened slightly.

"Why come to me? Why not go to Captain Rogers? It's more than obvious he wants you back in his life"

Bucky sighed, "Steve is the best friend I could ask for, well, based on the few things I can remember anyway. But I know he would tell me that it wasn't my fault and that I shouldn't feel guilty about all the things I've done, but the truth is, that every _single_ face of every person I've ever killed is burned into my mind and it stains my soul. I need to at least try to make amends for what I've done, and with you … I think that it's possible"

Grant nodded, "I get where you're coming from. My partner has a transport just outside of town, why don't we go meet him? He might also be able to make sure that there is no leftovers from Hydra's programing in there. I mean, we wouldn't want you to freak out and try to kill us just because the wrong song came on the radio or something"

"Smart idea", Bucky nodded as he picked up the newspaper hiding his gun, and stood up. Offering what he hoped was a reassuring smile, Grant stood up as well and the pair left the coffee shop, and started walking.

Across the street, Captain Steve Rogers glanced around looking for any sign of his friend, hoping that the news about Jack Monroe just might have been enough to draw him out. He couldn't hide his disappointment that he couldn't see Bucky anywhere.

 _I'll find you Buck … and I promise I won't stop trying._

/

The Internet was on fire as the latest video from Grant Ward hit the net, and at the Avengers Tower, Steve Rogers and his team watched with baited breath as Stark loaded it up for them, instructing JARVIS to play it on the large screen. It had been a week since Ward and his mysterious partner had rescued the hostages and now he had released a new video.

One co-starring the Winter Soldier.

" _My name is Grant Ward, and by now, most everyone watching this knows my story, but I'm not the only one out there that Hydra has used, and forced to do unspeakable things"_

Grant Ward stepped off camera, and Bucky Barnes stepped into view, from the last time he'd seen him, Bucky had gotten a haircut and was now clean shaven.

" _My name is James Buchanan Barnes. To some of my friends it's …_ Bucky _",_ he took a deep, audible breath, trying to ignore the way the word sounded foreign on his tongue, and decided to stare straight into the camera.

" _I was a soldier, and a proud member of the Howling Commandos serving under by my best friend Captain Steven Rogers during World War Two. After a fight, in which I was almost killed, I was found, unresponsive and barely alive, by Arnim Zola and his Hydra forces. I was taken to be experimented on, to be trained, to be brainwashed into serving them as an assassin. I did this for over seventy years, until I encountered Steve again earlier this year. He helped free part of my mind, and reminded me of who I was … who I am. Grant has worked to free me completely from Hydra's control, but … I am still left, with the memories of every person I killed and every wrong I ever committed while under Hydra's control, but the Winter Soldier will never hunt for Hydra again … I can promise you that"_

Bucky, letting his frustration and anxiety leak in slightly, took to pacing lightly across the screen, before Ward reappeared in the frame, placing a hand on his shoulder, and offering him a nod, receiving several in return, before Bucky turned to face the cameras once again, _"To that end I wish to announce that we have hired the New York based law firm, Nelson & Murdock, to help broker arrangements with the United States Government, so that I can turn myself in to give a full accounting of every crime I committed while under Hydra's control"_

" _I hope in time that I may be forgiven for what I have done. Until the details of my surrender are worked out, I am going to do the same as Grant Ward and we are going to fight back against Hydra, and make them see the truth - that they can't win - because much like the Nazis they sprang from, they are destined to fail"_

As the video ended, the Avengers turned to look after their friend, only to find his seat vacated. A quick look told them that Steve was stood with his back to them, staring out of the floor-to-ceiling windows that afforded them a view overlooking all of New York. What they couldn't see was that he was smiling, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

 _It looks like Bucky's finding his way home already._

/

Meanwhile, across town in the area that was called Hell's Kitchen, reporters for every major news network in the tristate area were hounding on the doors of Nelson & Murdock, _Attorneys at Law_ , determined to be the first network to get an exclusive with the two unknowns that the country's hottest story had chosen to represent them.

Several city blocks away, there were cries of " _Cheers_ ", as Matthew 'Matt' Murdock and Franklin 'Foggy' Nelson had taken their secretary, and friend, out to celebrate what was going to be a game-changing case for them, in the only way they knew how.

By adding more to their tab at Josie's.

/

Feeling nothing but good after his second video once again became viral, Grant Ward settled himself comfortably into the black leather reclining chair that Norbert had procured for him, as he briefly glanced over the public's responses to the video, before shifting his attention to the Hydra communications network they'd 'tapped' into.

He was the one reading through the data. Combining his ability of super-speed to speed-read, with his life's worth of knowledge of Hydra's intricate workings to best select his team's next target.

He'd combed through a little over seventy percent of the data, when he located something useful.

 _Really useful._

Apparently, there was a Hydra sect under the control of Wolfgang Von Strucker reporting successes in the creation of gifted individuals by combining human DNA with the power of Loki's sceptre.

Hydra creating super-soldiers was _not_ a good thing.

Nor was it something he was going to sit by and let happen.

"It's been less than a month after I get out and they're doing this? Come on I'm trying to be good here", he complained to the empty room.

"Problem, Grant?" Bucky's voice met his ears as he strode into the room.

"Yeah", he blew out a breath, hoping the news wouldn't upset his newest partner, "Hydra's somehow making super-powered assets at a base in Sokovia from that Chitauri Sceptre Loki had when he attacked New York. S.H.I.E.L.D. were supposed to have it, but …"

"So … what I'm hearing is that we've found our next Mission", Bucky smiled genuinely for what felt like the first time in forever. He wasn't surprised at what Hydra were doing - their Winter Soldier programme was proof enough that they wanted more like him - but he was just itching for some real Hydra payback before he surrendered himself to the government.

"Let's grab Nobert and start planning"

Bucky nodded and went to find Norbert.

/

Fitz read the pages Ward had sent through to them again, and he was beginning to understand what the legend was - or at least what it supposedly was.

Fitz had originally thought that the 0-8-4 information Ward had left him might just be for some sort of alien device that could potentially heal him, or at the least be a weapon S.H.I.E.L.D. could use in their secret war. He hadn't intended on giving Coulson the note Ward had left for him, but once he'd seen the information on the microdot, he knew he was going to need help to find this device and Coulson was really his only option.

"Hello Fitz", came the soft voice of Jemma Simmons, as she entered the lab, stepping up to stand behind her lab partner.

Fitz just waved her greeting off, as he focused solely on the text on the screen in front of him.

"How are you doing?"

"I'm doing better Jemma … I … I … I think Ward left this for me because he thinks it could restore me to what I was before …", he trailed off, unsure as to what is was he wanted to say.

 _Or maybe,_ he admitted, _unsure as to what it was he wanted to remember._

"So what?" She snarled at him, making him the focal point for her rage, "He wants to make amends for hurting you by being the one to heal you?"

Fitz stopped what he was reading, turning to look at her, his face a mask of confusion mixed with fear.

He stood up, showing both of his hands in a calming gesture, "Jem just … listen to me for a minute, okay?"

When she made no movement other than to breathe, he decided it was the best chance he was going to get.

"Ward isn't this … this big, scary, inhuman monster you make him out to be", she moved to speak, but he was on a roll now, letting his hands gesture as he spoke, "Di … D … Did he betray us? Yes, he did. Did he drop us out of a plane and into the ocean? Yes, he did. But, but … he did it to save our lives. After he escaped, Coulson ordered Skye to look through every piece of footage from the Bus's cameras, see if there was something we missed, and … well … she found something you need to see", Fitz told her as moved over to his computer and pulled up the video file.

"Fitz … there is nothing you can show me that can possibly make me believe that Ward was actually trying to help us"

Unperturbed by her response, he hit 'Play', before moving out of her way, giving her full access to a full view of the screen.

" _Are you alright?"_

 _Coughing lightly, John Garrett patted against his Deathlok implants, making sure they were there, reassuring himself._

 _He sat up gingerly, barking off orders to his men and Raina, demanding the GH-325 mock-up, before turning to his protégé of fifteen years, and handing him his pistol._

" _I need you to cross 'em off. Use this. I want to see a bullet right in the middle of their brains when you're done with it"_

" _John-"_

" _Is there a problem?"_

 _An audible swallow, "No … I'll get rid of them"_

" _That's my boy"_

Jemma could believe her ears. "He was ordered to execute us?"

"He saved our lives by dropping that pod Jem"

She gaped at him, feeling lost inside. Her rage still burned, but it was quieter now, more aimless even. She still hated him - she had to - but it wasn't the same. He'd almost killed them.

Almost killed _Fitz._

But he'd tried to save them.

She choked on a sib, as she threw herself against Fitz, burying her head into his shoulder, hot tears running down her face, a combination of grief and rage.

Slowly, his hand rubbed soothing circles on her back, whispering in her ear, "It's okay Jems. I hated him too, until I found out, now … I feel lost", he kept her tight in his arms as she hiccupped against him.

Across the lab, Melinda May nodded her head slowly as she took in the scene she'd just watched, before silently slipping out of the lab.

It would take time, but the two of them would heal.

Hopefully, they all would.


End file.
